The Quest
Chapter One I began to lace my victorian-like corset, my dark brown skinny pants lying flat out on my bed. My room was dull. The walls were painted a thick, ugly beige, and the floor used to be white, although stained over the years into a snot-like yellow. My bed was a plain one, with a wooden headboard and footboard, and the sheets were tan. Although I thought it could use some improvement, it made do. My name is Rarity Daphne Castilo. I live in Dakota's Village, a small section of the Kingdom of Avalon. It was a small town, and if you're traveling somewhere else, it's highly likely people won't know what you're talking about when you tell them where you live. It's far better to say "on the edge of the map" instead. Plus, it gives a good laugh. After I got dressed, I walked out of the house that me and my grandma had shared, into the streets. It was always full of people, but especially today. Today was Sales Day, the day where every price was lowered down. I had about thirty coins on me, which would be enough for two bags of groceries, as far as today goes. Heading towards the bakery, I'm stopped by Jake, a florist that my grandmother and I would always buy from. He gives a warm smile, which I return with a fake one that I hope comes off as realistic. "Lovely to see you today, Rarity." "It's nice to see you too." I reply flatly. I've always had the feeling that he'd had a crush on me, although the feelings are far from mutual. "Before I take up any more of your time...I wanted to give you this. As a present, for Sales Day." A confused expression settles on my face as I open my mouth. "I only have about thir-" He hands me a bouquet of flowers, a mix of tulips and roses. "Free of charge." "Uh...thanks..." "Of course, Rarity." He says, before flushing bright red as realization hits him. He kept a customer waiting for the amount of time he was talking to me... "Uh, I've got to go back to work. Happy Sales Day, though!" He adds with a nervous laugh, the lady in line looking displeased. I just stick the bouquet underneath my arm, ignoring him as I quickly walk over to the bakery. ---- "Your total is ten coins," The cashier says, handing me the brown paper bag. It was the afternoon already, and it was probably best to go home. I pull out the ten coins left, sliding them across the counter. "Thank you for your purchase. Happy Sales Day!" "Happy Sales Day," I reply, stuffing the other smaller bag into this one. I roll my eyes, not having any room, or use, for the bouquet. I'm about to toss it as familiar silver hair and fairly wrinkled skin runs up out of nowhere, and snatches the flowers away. "Nonsense! These are beauties! Why are you throwing away your money?" My grandma asks, raising her voice. I groan. "They aren't anything special. Besides, they were free. Jake gave them to me as a gift, or whatever..." "The poor boy..." She says, looking at me crossly and I roll my eyes again. "These would go great with the walls of the dining room!" "Whatever. Can we please go home?" She's about to say something else as a gunshot rings out, and I instantly duck, bringing her down with me. She yelps as we hit the ground, and more gunshots are set off. "Son of a-" An explosion is heard in the distance, and I quickly grab the bags. "We have to get out of here!" "Rarity," I hear her murmur slightly, her shaky hand on her side. The impact of the fall had hit her elbow, and I could see a decent amount of blood. I almost cringe at the sight. With my free arm, I help her back up, and try to rush her back to our street as fast as I can. There are tons of people running, people screaming, and swords slicing the air. People dressed in black are flooding the road, but I focus more on getting home. Taking a left on our street, I quickly heave her to our front door, opening it and closing it back tightly. I settle her down onto a chair in our living room. "God damn it," I mutter, throwing the bags to the side as I lift up her sleeve. There's not a lot of blood, but there is way more than just a little. I'm about to curse some more as Peter bursts through the door. "Rarity! Mathilda! Are you two okay?" He says, shutting the door behind him. He locks it, which I supposedly forgot to do, being in such a hurry. "I'm fine, but grandma..." I say softly. He quickly kneels down beside me, inspecting the wound. "She'll be fine. Go get me the emergency kit." Doing as he says, I return a few seconds later with a white box in my hand. He quickly pulls out a whole bunch of things, and within minutes, he's all done. "There...what about you?" He says, as he lifts a finger, touching my eyebrow. I stifle a pained cough, and he frowns. "Sit down." "I'm fine, Peter..." He forces me into the chair, beginning to work on me, now. My eyes wander to my grandma, who sits on the couch, a fearful look in her eyes. I avert my eyes to Peter. "What happened out there?" I ask, realizing that the whole commotion had stopped. "Seems like we were ambushed, I assume. Tons of people in black. Couldn't see a single face." He says, pressing a sanitizing napkin on my cut. I pull back quickly, sucking in my breath between my teeth. "Sorry." He says, watching me. I nod as he places a bandage on me, and then wipes his hands off. He looks to the side, pressing his lips into a fine line. "Do you guys want to stay at my place?" "What?" I ask. "No, we're fine here..." "No, you aren't. Besides, what do you have here? Death almost at your door? My place is safer, plus, I have weapons..." He was right on that. Grandma didn't let me keep any weapons besides my crossbow for training purposes, and I only had three black arrows. Not a single close-ranged thing to defend myself with, which means if another ambush happens...what would happen to grandma next? "Rarity, Peter is right." She says quietly, her soft, hazel eyes staying on me. I sigh. "Yeah. Fine. Whatever." A damn ambush hasn't happened for years...and now, we have to take shelter, which makes us look more poor than we already are. "Then it's settled. Pack up your bags and let's go. You can stay at my place for at least a week, just to ensure that no other ambush happens. After that, you can leave whenever you'd like." "Sounds good." I say, heading over to my room to pack. Chapter Two I yawn, my eyes opening into thin slits to see unfamiliar surroundings. I jolt up before remembering I'm in Peter's room. I hear him chuckle from the entrance, and I see him leaning on the door. I scowl at him. "Why are you stalking me?" "I was coming to wake y-you for breakfast, but it seems like you already had w-woken up." He says through small laughs. "Screw you." Peter was childhood friend and a favorite of my grandma. He had black hair, like me, which strands of it would repeatedly fall into his eyes, and dark grey eyes. He had a muscular build, and I'd say he stands at around 6'0. He was definitely attractive, and all of the girls at school had loved him, although he hardly cared for relationships. Hell, if I had a chance, I'd take it, but it'd be weird. After all, we've been friends for ten years, now, and he's like a brother to me. "...B-Besides, you're lucky you weren't close to me. I'd probably would've whooped your ass." I retort. He just laughs some more, and I roll my eyes, walking past him. I head on to the bathroom installed into his own room, which was far more plainer than my own, and is decorated to an extent. He just has a simple sink, a toilet, and a shower. Oh, and an aloe plant in the far right corner, right by the cabinet. After freshening up, I return to the dining table to join Peter and my grandma for breakfast. It was eggs, sausage, orange juice and a bread bun. Yuck. "Peter, you know I hate eggs." "But you need extra protein, as skinny as you are. Besides, eggs are healthy for you." I roll my eyes for about the millionth time today, shoving the bread bun into my mouth. I wasn't ''that ''skinny. Well, fine, maybe I was, but I did have quite a nice rack. And I'm completely fine with that being the only large amount of fat on my body...and I'm not unhealthily thin, anyways, so what's the problem? After finishing breakfast, excluding the eggs, I began to help Peter out with the dishes. Grandma decided to go back to her guest room and take another nap, along with a painkiller. I yawn, rubbing my eyes, and considering copying her, too. "Nuh-uh. We have a big day ahead of us." He says far too fast, catching me beginning to walk towards the direction of my room. "What?" I ask, knitting my eyebrows together. "No, we don't. Well, at least, ''I ''don't." He laughs a little. "Did you forget?" "Forget what?" "Your birthday, Rarity. Tomorrow, remember?" Shit...my birthday...my birthday! I was so caught up in the ambush and staying at Peter's place that I'd completely forgot. I smirk. "All the more reason to let me sleep, then. I need rest for my big day." I say, although still shocked that I forgot... "You're only turning seventeen, and you already act forty. Come on, why not go ahead and check out the stores?" "But I don't feel like it," I whine, because I really don't. I couldn't sleep at all last night, having been frustrated at the ambush. It had reminded me of the incident years ago, which I should be less sensitive about, being almost seventeen, but it still made no sense. No tracks, no trace, no anything. Just a huge crowd of people fighting other people, a scream, and boom - Liza was gone... "Please? I want to go and get a book from the library, anyway. I'm sure we could pick up an outfit or two for you...it'd make me happy." I raise an eyebrow. "Since when did you get so much money?" "I have my ways," he shrugs. "So I'll take that as a yes?" I purse my lips together, before nodding. He was being generous, and it'd be nice to have a new outfit. Besides, he is my best friend, ever since the disappearance of Liza. I can't say I'd react the same to anyone else, but to him...he's the only one who was comforted me through rough times. And if he wants this so desperately...well... "Great. Meet me outside in fifteen?" "You got it." ---- Walking through the Haskell Plaza, I walk with Peter towards another shop. I already had six new tops in a brown paper bag, and a dark grey skirt, formal navy blue dress and a high-waisted pair of shorts in another. "Peter, it's fine, really," I say, honestly not wanting him to overspend. He never had this much money...I can't even remember the last time I bought so many clothes at a time. So much for buying me an 'outfit or two'. "One more store," He says, dragging me along. I quickly stumble on behind him, quite puzzled as to why he wants to buy me so many things. I read the name, "Jasmine's Jewelers", and my eyes widen. Once inside, he brings me to one of the displays, seperating us from the jewerly with a layer of glass. "You could pick something from here, I suppose." I frown. "Peter, this is too much...I really don't want, nor need, all of this - if any." He just sighs, ignoring my comment, and points to one of the necklaces. It was made of pure silver, with a sapphire pendant hanging off of it. "This seems like something that would fit you." He murmurs softly. I'm about to open my mouth to protest before he calls over the salesclerk, and I just turn on my heels, holding my head. Is this even real? Since when did Peter do this much for me, let alone, be able to afford all of it? I hope he's not taking it out of his own pocket money, because I swear to God if he- "You okay there, Rarity?" A voice asks, and I look up immediately to catch a tall man with golden brown hair and grey eyes staring at me. The girl accompanying him smirks. "I thought she'd be...older." "It said she turns seventeen tomorrow," He replies. Woah, woah, woah. How do they know this much about me? My name, my age? "Who the hell are you?" I ask, furrowing my eyebrows. "And how the hell do you know so much about me?" The girl continues to inspect me and I look for Peter, but he's no where to be found. God damn it... "It's nice to finally meet you. Part of the Castilo family, correct?" The mysterious guy says, and I begin to back away. I reach into my bag, looking for something, but I find nothing. Guess my hands'll do. "Happy early birthday, by the way." "Tell me who the hell you are, or your ass is grass!" I say, curling my hand into a fist. "Woah, calm down. We aren't here to hurt you-" I'm about to swing as an arm grabs my own, stopping the upcoming punch. I quickly turn my head around to come face-to-face Peter, a concerned look on his face. "Rarity, are you alright? What happened?" I turn my head back around, although nobody there. My jaw drops. "I just...b-but...these two people, a guy and a girl, they...they were right...right..." "I think we should go home now, okay? The sun's already going down." He says, guiding me out of the shop. I'm speechless all the way home. First an ambush, then two random people who know my full name, age, birthday, and appearance? Something isn't right... "So, what happened?" He asks, unlocking the front door to his house. I exhale deeply, running my hand through my hair. "There was...there was..." I close my eyes and shake my head. "Forget it, I'm probably just imagining things, or something. Stress, that's all." Yeah, stress. Besides, they could've been normal people who just know me because they're friends of my grandmother, or something. That shouldn't scare me, right? "I'm gonna go to sleep, try and catch up on some that was lost last night." I say, sneaking two aspirins into my pocket. The minute he turns around, I pull him into a hug, closing the bottom cabinet with my foot before he could see. He was always so suspicious on medicine, and would only take it if he was basically dying of pain, which he had applied to me, too. Otherwise, he doesn't like downing pills all over the place, nor does he like me doing it. "Thank you so much for the gifts, Peter...really, thank you." He gives me a small squeeze. "No problem. You're like a little sister I never had...besides, as miserable as you've been for the past few months, I figured it'd be nice." I frown, memories flooding my head. My parents had passed around almost a year ago, with no reason why. I can't really claim that they died, but it's better off saying it. They had disappeared and it's been so frustrating saying 'my parents are missing', so it's better off saying they're dead. It seemed like it, anyways, and I've began to believe it, too. I clear my throat. "Oh, uh, right. Anyways, goodnight." I say somewhat sternly, although not really meaning to. The whole situation had worked me up, and it came off like that. Not that I'd correct myself. He did bring it up, after all. "Goodnight." I hear him say, and I enter Peter's room that I was staying at, dropping onto the bed. Dry swallowing the two capsules tucked deep into my pants pocket, I pull out an oversized T-shirt from his drawer and undergarments from my own belongings. I'd wear my own pajamas, but his were way comfier and softer. I walk into the bathroom connected to the room, peeling off my clothes. I take a quick shower with a soap that smelled like lavender, and a conditioner that smelled like a mixture of mint and aloe. High-quality things like this were hard to come by... Whatever it was worked well with my hair, and the soap left my skin smooth. I change into the shirt and undergarments and hop into bed, snoozing off not even a minute later... Chapter Three Peter belches from where he's sitting, making me giggle. Today was my seventeeth birthday, and although sixteen was the legal age to freely consume alcohol, my grandmother didn't approve of it. Sure, I'd stolen a few bottles from bar stands when the cashier wasn't looking, but that was quite rare. I'd usually have to find a time to drink it, which was hard, as I'd had chores to do at home. Luckily, after she gave me a ruby red dress as a present, I managed to convince her to let me have a few drinks for the fun of it. She agreed to watch over the house until I was back. By now, I was already halfway drunk, with no clue of the time. My boobs were practically almost popping out of my corset, as I was having quite a difficult time keeping them in. Peter couldn't really keep his eyes off of him, which I'll admit, kinda turned me on, but I brought myself to try and not make a move. "Hey, knock it off," I say, laughing, as I slap at his arm. "It's not my fault! Besides, you've had that corset since you were what, fifteen? You were basically flat-chested by then! How do they even grow that big within two years?" We both laugh together and I take another swig of beer. It was an aquired taste that I haven't had in a while, and damn, did it feel good to drink it again. "So when did you get so much money, Mr. Rich?" I say, my speech slurred. I hiccup and he gave a loud laugh. "Because...ah...I...I forgot..." I giggle some more, flipping my hair over my shoulder. Within a matter of seconds, I'm being dragged to the bathroom, making out with him. I was way too drunk to care, and at the moment, his lips on mine was quite a feeling... A small moan escaped my lips as his kisses went from my lips to the side of my chin, right next to my ear. I grasp onto his hair as he begins to unlace my top, his kisses travelling downward. All of a sudden he stops, and I become even more completely disoriented. I furrow my eyebrows at him as I begin to fall, his touch being so faint and far away as he lunges to catch me. "I'm so sorry," He whispers into my ear, which I can barely hear. My eyes travel up to the dim ceiling light before everything goes black. Chapter Four "How much longer are we gonna have to wait?" I hear someone ask. "Thanks a lot, Peter. You overdosed her on the damn thing." "I didn't mean to." I hear another voice reply back. I frown, trying not to drag too much attention to myself. I open an eye and notice that I'm laying down on something, and I'm turned towards a wall. "Look, she's awake," I hear someone say. Bloody hell... I open my eyes completely as I begin to prop myself up on the bed. I look around to find five faces staring at me, three unfamiliar. The only one I recognize is Peter. Oh, and the two from the outlet who basically knew my entire name, age, birthday and family. Not concerning, though. Not concerning at all. I swear under my breath, taking a deep breath and then swearing again as I find out my throat is dry as hell. Goddamn hangover... "Woah...what the hell is going on?" I ask, taking in my surroundings. I was in a room with dark brown walls. I see Peter looking down at a scroll in his hands, everyone except me sitting down in a chair. "Damnit, Peter, answer me!" "Calm down," I hear someone else say. The man with the grey-blue eyes. "You...you were the one stalking me, you weird ass bastard!" "You're safe with us," One of the two ladies say, and I scoff. "First an ambush, then your damn co-workers decide it'd be best to follow me and make it clear they know everything about me even if I've never seen them a day in my goddamn life, and then I wake up with a hangover in some supicious room with my own kidnappers telling me I'm 'safe'? Who the hell are you?" I see a brown-haired, muscular guy in the corner smirking at me, and although he's handsome, looks were the last thing on my mind. I was already pretty upset from this happening on my birthday, let alone shocked to death because Peter is part of a team that was kidnapping me. Oh, did I forget to mention that Peter was being suspicious as hell recently? "Does she usually get this mad?" He opens his mouth to say, keeping his grey-green eyes trained on me. "Just scared, that's all," Peter replies. I shoot daggers his way, although he doesn't pay much attention to me. "I feel like it'd be best to tell her in the morning," The same lady from the jewerler's says. Everyone stays silent before the guy watching me nods. "Yeah. Seems like hangovers make her more irritable than anything," He replies. "Alright. Get some rest, Rarity." And with that, him and the rest of the group gets up, walking out of the room. He turns off the light before leaving, and as much as I'd go out there and refuse, sleep sounded good right now, with the headache I had. I sigh, laying back down in bed, the only thing illuminating my face being the moonlight shining through the window. I close my eyes and drift off to sleep, my last thought being what the hell just happened? Chapter Five I hear three knocks on the door, waking me up. I yawn, rubbing at my eyes as whoever it is enters. "Wake up, Daphne." I scrunch up my nose. "My name's Rarity," I reply groggily, rubbing my eyes again. "Then again, you should know that." I look up to see the same good-looking guy from yesterday. His looks were similar to the stalker, although I found him cuter and bulkier, in a sense. He was well-toned and had pale skin, dark brown hair (which, the front, was brushed up and to the side), and pretty eyes, a perfect mixture of grey and green. He was wearing a light grey T-shirt and some normal pants and shoes. "...Earth to Daphne?" He says, and I don't even notice when he's only a few inches from my face. I yelp, shoving him away from me. He chuckles a little, cocking his head. "What were you doing that whole time?" I swallow, looking around anywhere but him. "Just, uh...thinking...yeah, thinking..." I lie casually, looking back to him. A corner of his lip pulls up into a lop-sided grin, although vanishes seconds later. He clears his throat. "Anyways, I'm sure you're wondering about why you're here, no? Get ready and meet us for breakfast." He says. He's about to leave as I cough. "Um, clothes, maybe?" I ask, this time being my turn to smirk. "Although the guys at the table would be thankful, I'm sure you have a more modest thing for me to wear, right?" His cheeks flush into a deep maroon as he takes a deep breath before nodding. "Right, right. I'll be back, then." "Yeah." I bite down on my bottom lip, tapping my feet. He returns a few seconds later with a brown tank top, a sandy-colored skirt, and a pair of tall, brown boots. I furrow my brows. "What? Not your type? Sorry, it was from Claire, and she's pretty...feminine." "No, not exactly, but it'll do." I say, taking it from his hands. "Do you have a bathroom I could use? I'm pretty sure I'm reeking of liqour." "Yeah, you kind of are," He says, and I roll my eyes. "Downstairs, first room to your right." I push past him, taking his directions but stopping mid-way down the stairs. I was in what seemed like a reasonable sized house, the walls painted a dark green and the floor made of cherry oak. The kitchen was simple, countertops made of marble, and the living room had two couches and a fireplace with a large rug in the middle. All of the rooms were upstairs, and the dining room was right behind the kitchen, where I could see people setting up the table. I continue walking down and turning right as told, straight into a bathroom. It was absolutely gorgeous, and had an aroma of eucalyptus oil and mint. I'd probably feel a little more calm if it weren't for the fact that I still have no clue as to where am I, and why my kidnappers are being strangely friendly. So, with that, I take a fast shower and brush my teeth and hair. I take a look at my reflection in the mirror before I leave. I have glossy, long, black hair that I usually put up into a ponytail, thick strands falling from the side of my face to frame it. I have amber eyes and lightly tanned skin, and a decent figure. It was easy to tell that I was from Hispanic heritage, although it is a rare occurance in the Kingdom of Avalon. I'm slightly curvy and have big breasts, but not so huge that they override my overall skinny shape. I don't have much in the hip department, though. My butt is also in the middle. It's round, but isn't exactly gigantic, nor is it flat. After deciding I've spent a good amount of time looking at myself, I turn off the light and return my dirty clothes to my room before coming back down. Everyone from last night was sitting at the dining room table, and their conversations all stops as I walk in. I cross my arms. "You know, if I knew I could hear a pin drop when I came in, I would've skipped breakfast." I mutter, taking a seat at the end of the table. I look down at the table, seeing a feast upon me. My plate had four buttered up hotcakes, two large sausage links, what I assume to be three enormous slices of honey-cured ham, two big toasted slices of wheat bread and a large glass of water. I began eating immediately, but then again, who wouldn't, with such luxury on a plate? ---- After about fifteen minutes of silent eating, I finally speak up. "Since nobody has anything to say, I do." I say, wiping my mouth with a hankerchief. You'd think me, being skinny-minny, would have the appetite of a bird, but I can eat quite a lot, and never worry about weight. "Look, we know you have questions-" Peter starts, but I stop him. "Good, because I do. I'd like to know why, as a birthday present, I was kidnapped and taken into some random form of custody, and have my best friend of ten years be a part of the whole thing. Because, quite frankly, none of this is making any sense to me!" I say, frustrated. I don't normally get so mad, but it seems like everyone was trying to push away from the truth. He sighs, putting his face into his hands. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see everyone staring at me. Blood rushes to my ears as I set down the fork I guess I had picked up while I was raising my voice. "I understand you're upset, Rarity, but it's a confusing matter. It has to be explained piece-by-" "Then, damnit, tell me! I deserve to know why all of a sudden I'm taken away from my otherwise normal life to be surrounded by people dressed in cloaks and crests!" The guy that had given my clothes earlier nods from his seat, looking up from his plate at him. "She's right, Peter. We did promise to tell her in the morning, anyways," He says, cutting into his ham. Peter grits his teeth. "Well, if you're so willing, tell her, Vaughn." Vaughn...so that's his name... "Gladly," He says with a small shrug, taking a sip of water before turning his head my way. "About a week ago, we'd gotten notice that there was a girl down in Dakota's Village that seemed to be the perfect candidate for the job of being a knight. Our last female knight, Fauna, had recently retired after a traumatic injury, and being thirty-nine, we thought it was best to let her go. Well, because of that, we were down one knight, which meant down one assistant during any ambushes or fights whatsoever, so, although we didn't want to...well...you were our last choice." I raise an eyebrow. "Wait, you mean I'm a knight now? How did I even...I didn't even approve of any of this! Wha-" "We know, but it was requested by a previous guardian of yours, and it was quite urgent. It probably wouldn't have been so forced, but..." He bites into a sausage link, swallowing it. "The Kingdom of Avalon is no joke. With the amount of crimes and harm being done to villagers, help is very important. But no need to worry, we informed your grandmother, and she has one of our people from the Castle heading to your house to look after her. You'll be able to visit her once you're on break, as it's a longs way from the Castle." I won't even get to see grandma often. I feel a tightening in my stomach, and I grasp my chair from underneath for support. I feel sick... "B-but...I'm not even trained, much less, willing to basically commit suicide. Me, against people who are skilled at swordfighting...and...and killing..and...they've been practicing years for this stuff! How can I-" "Peter told us you were quite good at hand-to-hand combat, and pretty proficient in archery." He says, wiping his hands off. "Besides, training is quite easy. If you're already decent with a bow and arrow, learning about close-range weaponry shouldn't be too hard, no? And the main focus is to at least knock people down or prevent them from harming others, not kill them." I let out a sigh of relief, but I'm still upset. Just because, sure, when I was around 13 or so I was good at streetfighting, and I've got a good hand in archery, doesn't mean I'm knight-worthy good. And how much can I learn in time to prepare myself for another ambush? I can't even remember the last time I physically fought someone, being less troublesome than I was as a child. It'll take time to come back to me... Vaughn looks at me, and doesn't really avert his eyes at all. He frowns. "Are you alright? Hey, don't worry, okay? You're not going to instantly be locked into a room filled with thieves and have to knock them all out within thirty seconds. Remember, you have us, okay? Don't worry about fighting at all. All we're doing is taking you to the Castle." He says, and I force a small nod. "So you're all knights?" "Correct." He replies. So this means the entire time...this is why Peter had so much money, why he bought me so many things that day...he knew. God damnit, he knew this was going to happen...why didn't he ever tell me he was a knight? I quickly push the thought to the side, focusing more on the important questions I had. "H-How long will it take?" I stammered, fighting tears that threaten to come to my eyes. I harden my voice. "To get to the Castle, I mean?" "It's a long process," An attractive young woman with medium length, chocolate brown hair says. "I'd say three weeks, from here, in Gransville, maybe? Four, tops?" My heart thumps in my chest. Gransville was only two hours away from Dakota's Village, and that gives enemies so much more time to ambush again, and now, me being a knight, that gives me all the more attention... I assume she notices my face paling, as she quickly gets out whatever else she was gonna say. "B-But it's alright! It'll go by fast." She says, re-assuring me with a warm smile. "Yeah," The guy from the jewelers says with a small smile. "Don't lie to her, Claire." He says, eyeing her. "And Zanneth, when was the trip not a living hell? With the amount of trouble we'll probably run into, it'll be the most dreadful three weeks in her life." Peter says. Claire. The same girl Vaughn was talking about. She had really pretty wavy hair, and piercing blue eyes. She was wearing a tan vest with a mini skirt, and knee-high, black boots, and stood at around 5'9. And on top of that, a beige cloak, and a gold crest. I could definitely see what he meant when he said she was girly, but it suited her nice figure. Zanneth was the other guy I had met the day before my birthday. Observing him now, he truly does look like a knight. He had a similar facial structure to Vaughn, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were brothers. His eyes were blue with a little grey in them, and his hair was about a shade darker than Vaughn's, an unfamiliar shade of an off-black. It was in a similar hairstyle, and his muscles were pretty large. He stood at around 6'4. "Don't listen to the asshole," She says, rolling her eyes. "And are you sure he's your best friend? I wouldn't be able to stand five minutes around him." I take in her words and actually think about it. Was he my best friend? He was an excuse for one, I guess. Ever since Liza was gone, he was the only person I had left, and I wasn't too warmed up to the whole 'making new friends' idea. Now that I think about it, she's right, he's kinda been an ass, which adds all the more reason to be pissed at him. But he seems to have been stressed lately, as he is usually nicer than this. I wonder what's making him so cold... "Anyways, wow, it's almost noon." Vaughn says, beginning to stand from his seat. "Lunch can be held until three, I suppose. Teagan, watch her for me, will you? Peter, Zanneth and I are going to get some paper and ink to confirm that we have her, and Claire's going out to get Rarity a utility belt and a few outfits." The other girl out of the two nodded, looking over at me. She had dirty-blonde hair that pooled around her shoulders and extended all the way to her waist, and green eyes that had flecks of an even darker shade of green in them. I'd say she's my height and age, if not a little more, although she definitely looked more fit than I did. She was the same one from the weird encounter, which I assume was to make sure I was the person needed for the job. Now it all makes sense... "There's not much to do here, as it's just more of a place to stay at, but...do whatever you want, I guess." She says, and I nod slowly, getting up from where I've been sitting. My bum hurts, being on it for about two and a half hours... I decide to head back to the room I was staying at, and sit down on the bed. The symptoms of the hangover had weakened, and plus, I didn't drink too much. Five drinks wasn't too much, or at least, not to me...however, it is enough to get me drunk, so that explains getting the hangover in the first place. I sigh, taking off my boots and curling up in bed. I was exhausted, and overwhelmed from everything that's been happening. I quickly push my thoughts away before getting any more irritated than I need to and force myself to take a nap, just to take my mind off of everything temporarily. Chapter Six It was the next morning, and according to Teagan, we were leaving for Jorvik to get Vaughn's horse, Boozy, from a reserved stable. Right now, me, along with the group, were inside a carriage. The carriage is honestly the biggest carriage I've ever seen or heard of in my entire life, no joke, and the interior is even bigger. I had kept quiet for the past half hour, but I was beginning to get bored, and it was awfully hot. I decided to speak up. I look over to Vaughn, who was sitting right next to me, on my left. "So, your horse's name is Boozy?" I ask. "Yep. He's kind of rude to me though, and I'm his owner, which is pretty unfair. He likes everyone besides me, the damn thing..." He says, rolling his eyes, but smiling a little. "And...you're a knight, too? Along with Teagan?" I ask Claire, and she nods. "Yep. You'd think that only males can be knights, but females can, too. And I'm one of them," She says with an awfully proud grin. Everything's quite for a few seconds before Zanneth lifts his head. "Hey, since we're talking about knights, shouldn't we assign a knight to Rarity?" Zanneth asks. We go over a large bump in the path, which makes the carriage shake. Although it was large, it was a carriage designed for traveling long distances, and there were several others made for people like the King, Queen and their friends. Therefore, every rock that got into the way, or everytime we went over a bridge, sounded like a firecracker. "I mean, she is a knight in training, after all. Until we arrive to the Castle, someone is gonna have to guard her." Claire clicks her tongue before answering. "It's up to her, I guess." She says before looking up at me with a smile. "What would you like to do, Rarity? Would you like to be assigned a guardian?" All eyes were on me, and I frown. "Huh? Oh, uh, it doesn't matter to me." I say, fidgeting. Peter chuckles. "You have to choose something. It'd be smart to choose someone to guard you." I hear Teagan sigh from where she was sitting. "Peter, let the poor girl choose what she wants. Sure, it's smart, but maybe she doesn't want a tail all day everyday." She says with a simple shrug. Peter just ignores her, rolling down the window with the crank. I bite onto my tongue. "Well, what would happen if I had someone guarding me?" I ask, looking back at Claire. She exhales deeply, tilting her head and looking up, as if she was thinking. "Well, whoever it is would basically protect you whilst during their job until we get to the Castle." She says. "Since we usually end up a few battles or so along the way, they'll just keep you safe. It could be annoying as they'd have to walk you around everywhere and such, but the main purpose is to keep you out of danger." I tap my leg. I'm about to speak before Teagan interrupts me. "Hey, Vaughn's a good knight. Maybe he could take care of her?" I look over to Vaughn, who was looking at Teagan. He didn't say anything, though. Claire nods her head. "Yeah, why not have Vaughn protect you? Definitely takes his job seriously." "And we don't?" Peter asks, scoffing. Claire rolls her eyes. "It's not that you don't, Peter. You're all good knights, it was just a suggestion..." She says, trailing off her words as she looks up at me. "So, does that sound good?" Vaughn being my knight? I mean, it didn't sound bad, but...I don't know. All I wanted was to get to the Castle and find out what the hell was going on and who requested me, but it seemed far difficult than what I had imagined. And I was already stressed out by how people who fight for a living from the Castle had recruited me on my seventeeth birthday. All I needed was to have one of these people watch me as soon as I awake to when I fall asleep... "S-Sure," I stutter, and the way it sounded made it clear I was unsure about everything. I plaster a look of reassurance on my face. "Yeah, sounds good." Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Peter looking at me, but the minute I turn my head his way, he averts his eyes. Jerk. Why does he act like he doesn't know me all of a sudden? I didn't ask to become a knight at all, and now he decides to be pissed... Out of the corner of my eye, I could also see a small grin come from Vaughn. From across our seat, Zanneth glares at him. "Take care of her or I'll beat your ass." "Shut it, little brother." Zanneth groans. "Only by a few goddamn seconds." He mutters under his breath. I guess they are brothers, then. I look to see catch a small glimpse at Vaughn, and when he catches me, he cocks his head. "You don't seem like you'll cause trouble. You won't, right?" He asks, knitting his eyebrows together. I shake my head, which was a partial lie. I wasn't a trouble-maker, but I am, as told, kind of stubborn. Which means if I want to do something, I'll likely do it, even after being told not to. "Good. You're in good hands with me, so sit back and relax. I'm your guardian, so leave all the worrying to me." He says, finishing the sentence off with a small smile. Teagan nods. "He's right about that. Best knight out of all of us," She says, looking at Claire as she bobs her head in agreement. "That's a fact." Claire says, smiling in my direction. I force a weak smile, in my head I'm questioning how will I even survive. And ever so slightly, Vaughn leans over and says under his breath, "I think you and I will get along just fine. I'm not as weird as the rest of them, don't worry." I let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I thought you were gonna be like a soldier, making me do two-hundred situps every morning." I whisper. He chuckles at my comment. "Maybe not me, but the people at the Castle might." And I shut up, 'cause I could know for a fact that he wasn't lying. Chapter Seven "Here we are," Says Peter, as the carriage comes to a stop. I look out of the small window to see a small town square, with not many people outside. It was mainly people working, or carrying home groceries. I get up, along with the rest of everyone else, and smooth down my shirt. Claire gets out first, then Teagan, and the rest of the boys and myself follow. "How about breakfast?" Zanneth asks, and we all nod in agreement. Teagan lifts an eyebrow. "Breakfast sounds good, but...where?" I look around as everyone begins to fight over places, observing my surroundings. It seemed like a middle-class type of town, as many of the people here looked proper, but not too elegant. My eye catches onto an inn, named after the town, and my eyes travel down to see a sign reading "Complimentary Breakfast". I tap onto Claire's shoulder, pointing at it. "Jorvik Inn?" She asks. I nod. She sucks in her cheek, as if pondering my suggestion. She opens her mouth soon after. "I mean, we do need a place to stay. It's already way past noon..." She says before nodding. "Sure, why not? Why don't you find out the cost so I can break apart this argument?" "Louise's Bakery! She always gives me free cookies." I hear Zanneth say, just for Teagan to bicker back. "She gives you free cookies because the damned eighty year old has a thing for you!" I blush when I find myself distracted by the fighting, so I quickly nod my head. "Y-yeah, sure." I say, before turning on my heels and jogging off towards the direction of the inn. --------------------- "Thank you!" I say, waving to the clerk as I push open a door. Within seconds after I'm outside, someone grabs me and throws me into the ground. I yelp in pain as whoever it is pushes my elbow behind me back, straddling me. They snicker bitterly, and something cold presses against my neck. I instantly stiffen as I realize it's a blade. "Castle thought they could get away with sneaking you in, eh? Stupid, stupid people..." A deep voice says, and my eyes drift to the small puddle in front of me. I get a small glimpse of a faceless man dressed in black with a hood over his head. My heart's already in my throat, and his outfit seems familiar, but I can't remember. Damn it, if I could only remember... "Since the knights obviously do a shitty job at guarding you, I'm taking you from them. That'll teach them...and you seem petite, small...you could do as a messenger Falcon-" A sharp sound tears through the air and I hear something whizz over my head. The attacker releases their hold and I take the opportunity to get back on my feet, only to see Vaughn aiming his bow at them. "Move and you die," He says through clenched teeth. My eyes widen, never seeing him this angry. I definitely see why he's a knight. His eyes flicker to mine just for half of a second, and then they're right back on the hooded man. "Don't you see her? Fragile, small. You couldn't pick on somebody your own size? She's a teenager, for God's sake. Can't be any more than what, fifteen?" The man just stands there, trembling. Vaughn smirks. "Maybe I should shoot at your head. Let some air into it." "Please, no!" The person says, hands now raised. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for trying to get the girl! I didn't know she was that young!" "It shouldn't matter her damn age. You shouldn't be harrassing anybody like that, you hear? Now get out of here before I beat your ass to the curb." Vaughn says, and the man scurries off. He then looks at me. "You okay?" I open my mouth, but no words come out, so I kinda just stand there speechless. And the first thing that comes to mind is the first thing that comes out of my mouth. "You should get angry more often." I quickly bring my hands up to my mouth, and I mentally scold myself for not watching my words. I expect him to, already being mad, reprimand me for not thanking him and taking my life seriously, but he chuckles a bit before biting his lip, cocking his head. Then he says the exact question I was praying he wouldn't ask. "Are you flirting with me?" A blush creeps up my neck, as well as goosebumps. How am I supposed to answer that? I didn't mean to actually say that, it just happened to slip out. And now I have to explain for it. Ugh. "Uh, no...no." I lie, running my fingers through my dark hair. He lifts both of his eyebrows and I laugh it off, playfully punching him. "I was kidding. Couldn't you tell?" I say with a small smile, and he shrugs. "Yeah, yeah. Just...I dunno. I was being stupid." He says, grinning. He stops smiling as he looks at my eyes. "Hey, your eyes...they're gorgeous," He murmurs, getting closer to me. "Wow. Amber, right? I've heard tons of stories, I just never knew that there were people with those type of eyes." I have nothing to say, so I just press my lips together, looking at his own. They were a rare mix of grey, blue and sea green, and I'm confused as to what he finds so interesting about mine, when clearly, his are a beauty of their own. I snap out of my daze when he pushes a loose strand of hair behind my ear. A soft, surprised gasp escapes my lips, and he gives a small grin. "Maybe I really am lucky to be your guardian, then." "Yeah..." I say weakly, my voice trailing off as I find myself feeling all fuzzy. Damnit, why am I feeling like this? He's just being friendly, I'm sure. "Wow, thanks, you guys, for keeping us worried sick! Neither of you returned to tell us anything!" Teagan throws her hands up into the air, rolling her eyes. Claire, Zanneth and Peter come up behind her, all looking pretty upset. "Sorry. One of the Falcons had attacked Rarity." He says, slinging an arm around my shoulder. Claire looks at me with wide eyes. "You poor thing! Are you okay?" She asks, inspecting me for any signs of injury. I quickly nod, giving her a re-assuring smile. "I'm fine. Really...thanks, Claire." "Those bastards?" Asks Teagan. "Why are they after her?" Vaughn shrugs, looking at me. "Did they say anything?" I think about telling them, but by the attacker's choice of words, I really don't think they'd be so pleased to hear it. Plus, I didn't really get any information out of what he said, anyway. "No. And if they did, I guess I wasn't listening, or something..." I murmur. Peter sighs. "Probably was scared to death." I look at him, before switching the question. Maybe they knew something I didn't. "Do you know why they're after me? Anything?" Vaughn furrows his eyebrows. "Well, V-" "Maybe we're better off telling her once we get to the Castle." Peter says, sticking his hands into his pocket. "It's a hell of a story and none of us ate anything." Vaughn shuts his mouth, nodding. "Yeah, I guess so." He replies, looking at me and giving my shoulder a small squeeze before letting go of me. I frown, walking into the inn as Claire drags me along, wondering what he meant by that gesture... Chapter Eight - To Be Continued Category:Stories by Blissfully Mine Category:Stories Category:Fantasy Category:Unfinished Category:The Quest